


I didn't know where else to go...

by Misthiel



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Angst, Blood and Injury, Doctor Who Series 12 Spoilers, F/M, Hopeless Idiots, Hurt/Comfort, I fell in love with a prompt and here we are, One Shot, Thoschei, just in case
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-06
Updated: 2020-09-06
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:01:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,743
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26323813
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Misthiel/pseuds/Misthiel
Summary: After being attacked, a deeply injured Master knocks at the TARDIS' doors. The Doctor finds she has his life in her hands, able to decide on his destiny.
Relationships: The Doctor/The Master (Doctor Who), Thirteenth Doctor/The Master (Dhawan)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 63





	I didn't know where else to go...

**Author's Note:**

> Recently I found this wonderful prompt ( https://samwellwinchesterthebrave.tumblr.com/post/186755738565/crewdlydrawn-nerdy-birdy18 ) and felt the urge to write a short Thoschei one shot about it, or at least try it. So, I hope you like it!
> 
> (Thinking about writing the opposite situation, it could be... interesting)

He knew she would be there.

Blood didn’t seem to care about the hand pressing tightly against his side, and jumped in free fall, drawing a dotted path into the dusty ground. The rest of his blood kept rumbling in his head, hearts beating on his temples with a quaternary rhythm. He could only stagger along the street, relying on a brick wall he couldn’t even see. With inaudible voice, he cursed the weakness of his body. To think that he intended to show up in front of her looking like that, dishevelled and powerless… It was eating him inside. And alive.

The pain on his side flared up and a heavy, anguished groan escaped his lungs, stealing with all the oxygen he had managed to inhale. Immediately, an uncomfortable tingle ran across his cheeks, playing with his senses and then, ascended to his eyes, making the world wobble around him. An ironic smirk was drawn on his face when he found the way to focus on that awful, squeaky-blue box in front of him.

With one last desperate step, he leaned against the door with his free hand, tapping it carelessly. He heard the echo of hasty footsteps and lively voice answered from the inside.

“Sorry, we’re out of service!”

The Master coughed, clearing his throat, but his words trembled anyway. “Doctor…”

The door opened so violently that he almost tripped over the figure in front of him. She took a step back in an attempt to defend herself from the menace she expected. Hanging on the door, he dedicated her a broken smile, blinking as he tried to focus the image of his nemesis.

“This time… I’m being honest; I- I didn’t know where else to go,” The Master exhaled.

Concern reflected on the Doctor’s eyes, who had to stop herself from instantly helping him. His presence was a blessing and a curse, empathy and rage both aflame in her. The events in Gallifrey were too recent, emotional wounds still open, bleeding as his physical injuries. But she changed her mind when she saw the Master collapsing under his own weight, giving her a few seconds to catch him before he hit the floor.

She started to feel his warm blood running through her arms, slowly soaking her coat now the Master wasn’t stopping it. Her brain fizzed with conflicting thoughts. “ _This is a trap AGAIN, don’t fall for this.” “NO, look! That sounded genuine, he’s in pain. He needs help.” “Sure, but he has abandoned you to death before.” “Ohh, SHUT UP, we’re not like that. We don’t even know if he can properly regenerate…” “He shouldn’t.” “WHAT? No!”_

She punched her chatty self aside, bringing all her medical knowledge to the table as she closed the door with her back and carried the Master body upstairs.

* * *

From the oval door frame, The Doctor stared at the at the body lying on her bed. She could see the steady movement of his chest, rising and falling slowly. Stabilizing him had been a nightmare. Not that she didn’t have the will, knowledge or instruments to do so, but the wounds were… peculiar. Only certain technology was able to hurt so deeply and with such cruelty. A shiver ran down her spine and she crossed her now exposed arms in front of her, trying to protect herself from her own train of thought.

The Doctor stood there for longer than she would have liked to admit, a battle unfolding on her mind. On one side, the heart-breaking feeling of loss, the part of her that still mourned those she considered her kind. The trails of smoke blurring the amber landscape and in the middle of everything, his silhouette. On the other side, equally fierce warriors stood defending a past she was clinging to, struggling to keep what gave shape to her broken identity. The gaps filled half of this faction; enormous black holes only vaguely illuminated by the tales of the Matrix. And he was also there.

But the fact was she had saved him. She had thrown aside her bloodied coat and fought to keep him alive. Maybe she couldn’t bear to lose him again, or perhaps, she was exhausted of seeing those around her perish. The answer, she didn’t have it yet.

As she was lost on her mind, the Master’s eyes fluttered slightly, consciousness coming back to him. All around him was covered on a reassuring silver mist, but he swore he could discern a shape standing not far from him. The spell was broken when a pinch went through his torso, tearing a whimper from his throat. The figure flinched, doubting for a moment whether to hide into the corridor not to be seen, or to approach him.

But her body finally pushed her into doing the last one.

“You okay? What hurts?” she asked, worry leaking through the corners of her voice.

“ ‘M fine. Just… waking up.” He took a deep breath, his sigh finally focusing on the deep eyes staring at him too close. “Ugh, this is worse than our hangovers on the Academy, there’s no glamour on this.”

The Doctor raised an eyebrow before speaking, half amused. “You mean yours, right?” She sighed and placed her palm on his forehead, gently sensing his temperature… and his pain. Telepathy among Time Lords was never accidental, but their contact was different. It went back so many centuries, that there were always some rebel thoughts able to break the barrier of their minds. The Doctor hissed and pulled her hand away, as did her gaze.

At the same time, The Master felt a string of pain leave his body, freeing his mind of the fog covering it. He stood up slightly on the bed, recognizing his friend's bedroom around him. In the meanwhile, the Doctor had moved to one side, staying in profile to him. Hiding... or holding something back.

“Tell me, old friend… why shouldn’t I pay you with the same coin as you?” She glanced back at him, confidence on her eyes. “What’s stopping me from pushing you into the nearest dying star and just… fly away?”

If the question had caught the Master off guard, he didn’t show it. Instead, he showed a half-smile, imperfect due to his state, but as effective as ever.

“Because you’re not like that, dear. You could if you wanted, I’ve always told you got the fire for that, but right now? On this day?” He waved his head and chuckled as answer.

“Are you testing me?”

“Oh, most of the time, yes. Not right now.” He straightened his back, stretching his sore muscles. “C’mon, Doctor. I’m joking, just… crack a smile.”

Her lips tensed and she gave him a look as sharp as the edge of a knife. If it had been made of iron, it could have killed him.

“Don’t tell me to smile, rather tell me why you came here. Looking for mercy? Forgiveness?” She tilted her head, that time looking directly at him. She grasped the exact moment in which he put on his façade again, realizing he was about to start playing with half-truths… again.

“I was being genuine back there. I told you, I really didn’t know where to go.” He admitted, with puppy eyes that faded an instant later. “And also, because I knew They were following me. Either you would destroy Them… or They would finish you off. Anyway, I win!”

The Master snapped out those last words, chuckling like a little child as he finished talking. But her reaction was the exact opposite of what he expected. Her eyes sparked and a grin appeared on her face.

“You really think I haven’t taken care of that yet? Those wounds… were made by weapons we both know well. Gallifreyan, used by Time Lords, to be more specific. I’ve already hidden the TARDIS from their sight, so don’t worry,” she stated as she leaned over him, lowering her voice un till it became into a whisper. “You’re safe now.”

She knew that would upset him, at the very least. The Master opened his mouth to spit out a hurtful response… but he couldn’t find one, so he closed it again as frustration escaped him in the form of a short sigh.

“I found them again. Fugitives. I had to end it, to tear their miserable existence of this world. They-“

Hearing those words, the Doctor reached his hand and with gentle touch and no warning, she placed her fingers on his hand. “Enough. You have to stop this, _Koschei_.” The Doctor remarked that last name, letting it float on the air around them for a moment. “Stop the killing, the reckless jumps into the void… the betrayals.”

For an instant, the Master didn’t know if the reason he was holding his breath was the sudden touch or the mention of a long-forgotten name. Their synapses short-circuited, an uncontrolled swarm of thoughts flying all across his mind.

“But it was- I wasn’t-,” he babbled, redirecting all his energy to show indignation. “They deserve it! That’s the mildest fate they should suffer after what they did to you!”

Silence darkened the room, only lighted by the bright smile drawn on the Doctor lips. Her sight fell to her feet, still caressing the Master’s palm with her thumb. If it was anger or compassion that filled her chest, he didn’t now it. And neither she showed it. She stood up, sliding her hand away.

“We’ll sort that out later. Debts will be settled, but on the meanwhile…” The Doctor turned around before crossing the door. “You´ll stay here. Don’t even think about leaving the ship, she’s not as nice as me and really doesn’t like not to be in control.”

Still trying to hide the warmth that had appeared on his cheeks after letting his last phrase escape, the Master coughed and re-positioned on the bed.

“Sounds pretty similar to her owner…”

“Oh, shut up…” She grumbled, shaking her head as she left the room.

A deep breath left his chest when the Doctor disappeared and he closed his eyes, exhausted from the conversation and remorse killing him inside. His uncontrolled emotions, his “weakness”, as he himself had named, never give him a rest, so he’d rather force himself into a comforting sleep. Into nothingness, a place where neither his thoughts, nor the drums could reach him.

And yet, he knew she would be there.


End file.
